Syria's Assad prepares for re-election; supports Russia in Crimea

Syria's Bashar al-Assad is discreetly preparing to be re-elected for a third-term as president of Syria. He has also voiced his support for Russian premier Putin's intervention into the crisis in Ukraine.

Reuters reports that while Mr. Assad has not yet declared this but preparations in government-controlled parts of the capital indicate that this is the case

Authorities are organizing demonstrators to voice support for Assad and condemn the opposition for the woes of the war-torn country.

The vote is scheduled to be held in July.

The Syrian opposition say that the primary pre-condition for any peace-deal with the Damascus regime must be predicated on Mr. Assad relinquishing hold over power

AFP also informs us that Mr. Assad has voiced "solidarity" with Russian President Vladimir Putin over his action in Crimea. The state-run media in Syria it was said that Mr. Assad, "expressed . . . Syria's solidarity with Putin's efforts to restore security and stability to Ukraine in the face of attempted coups against legitimacy and democracy in favor of radical terrorists."

The Syrian president even praised Mr. Putin for his "wise political leadership and commitment to international legitimacy based on the law that governs ties between nations and peoples," and says that his country is committed to "Putin's rational, peace-loving approach that seeks to establish a global system supporting stability and fighting extremism and terrorism."

The three-year-old uprising against Mr. Assad's rule has left at least 140,000 people dead. Russia is a supporter of the government in Damascus.